


Dragged From The Depths

by HiddenDreamer67



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: G/T, Giant/Tiny, Mer!AU, Mermaids, do you get it yet there's mermen, mer!sides, mermaid, mermaid!au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-23
Updated: 2019-07-27
Packaged: 2020-03-09 21:16:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,193
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18925180
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HiddenDreamer67/pseuds/HiddenDreamer67
Summary: Dr. Picani, Captain Deceit, and Interns Thomas and Remy aren't sure what to make of the strange violet-colored creature that is brought into the lab one day...but perhaps some things are better off untouched.Furious about the disappearance of their brother Virgil, mers Roman, Logan, and Patton are quick to try to jump to his rescue and get their family back together again.





	1. A Pretty Little Find

“Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.” Picani murmured, staring wide eyed into the large tank that took up the entire opposing wall. His colleagues stood by his side, equally in awe.

“Bless you.” Remy joked, but even the coffee intern couldn’t tear his gaze away. Inside was the expedition team’s latest find. From the waist down, it had a dull almost purple tail not unlike a nurse shark, but from the waist up… it was  _human._

“Doctor Picani, what is that?” Thomas asked, taking a closer look inside. The creature hissed, showing off the fact it had the sharp fangs of a predator. (Er, make that  _mostly_  human.)

“Found it just outside the reef.” Deceit explained, taking a step towards the tank. The creature slunk back, ducking into the shadows. “It was disoriented enough that we were able to nab it; the storm must have knocked it astray.”

Deceit gave an experimental tap of his knuckle on the glass. The effect was immediate- the creature came flying up towards the wall, causing most of the humans to take a surprised jump backwards. But Deceit managed to stand his ground, looking over the strange creature. It had cloudy eyes, with violet pupils that turned almost to slits in its clear irritation. Though it flared up and bared its clawed hands, Deceit noted that the creature was no larger than himself.

“Careful!” Picani warned, rushing forwards. “You’ll startle it.”

“I think it’s been startled quite enough already.” Deceit raised his palm as if to display the fish. “Look at it- such a magnificent, undiscovered creature must have been avoiding humanity all this time. By merely bringing it here we’ve turned its entire world upside down.”

“Maybe we should just release it, then.” Thomas suggested, getting an uneasy feeling as it began to release a series of wails. They were muffled by the glass, but even muted it was clear the sound could be compared to nails on a chalkboard.

“What, and waste this opportunity?” Deceit turned around to raise an eyebrow at Thomas. “Surely you don’t want to squander this position, do you Mr. Sanders?”

“Well, no, but-”

“This creature was nearly knocked unconscious when we discovered it.” Deceit continued. “For all we know, it sustained terrible injuries from the storm. Do you really want to break procedure and release an unexamined specimen back into the ecosystem?”

“…no.”

“Not to mention, this is a unique being.” Deceit turned back to the tank. “How have we never discovered such a thing? Does it possess camouflage traits? Is it perhaps actually a mutant government experiment gone rogue?”

“It is freaky looking.” Remy commented, tilting his head this way and that to get a better look.

“But by all means, if you would like to put this government and this planet at risk, the boat is yours.” Deceit took his keys from his pocket and dangled them with a smirk, knowing Thomas wouldn’t take up the offer.

“Okay, yeah, fine, when you put it like _that_ of course I don’t, but you’re kinda being dramatic, don’t you think?” Thomas rolled his eyes.

“…wait.” Picani said quietly, putting up his hand to silence everyone. “Look.”

The crew looked where Picani was pointing, noting how the merman had stopped thrashing. Instead, its head was tilted in almost a curious manner, looking at the keys Deceit held aloft. Wanting to test a hypothesis, Picani reached out and slowly moved Deceit’s wrist. Sure enough, his eyes followed, the pupils widening like a kitten.

“Oh my god.” Remy laughed. “You guys got  _catfished._ ” Picani laughed as well.

“This is incredible!” Picani celebrated. “It’s responding to stimulus.”

“You do realize children can do that as well?” Deceit reminded him. “And can I have my wrist back?”

“Oh, yes, my apologies.” Picani grinned sheepishly, releasing Deceit’s wrist. The field specialist rubbed at his wrist with a scowl, the keys jangling back and forth.

“Why is that such a good thing?” Thomas asked.

“Well, I’m sure you all noted that this being is very.. _.humane_  in appearance.” Picani explained.

“Of course, I’d forgotten how I grow fangs, fins and cloudy eyeballs.” Deceit rolled his eyes, putting his keys away.

“Been there.” Remy nodded solemnly, pushing up his shades. The mer blinked, looking confused as to where the keys could have gone.

“You know what I mean.” Picani chided. “And I have a hypothesis that if we were able to connect with this person on any sort of level, even something as simple as watching shiny objects, maybe we can get to a level of intelligent communication!”

“Oh my goodness gracious!” Thomas gasped. “Just like aquaman!”

“Yes-! Ah, no.” Picani looked confused for a moment. “More like…the Little Mermaid.”

“Are you  _our_ little mermaid?” Remy teased, crouching down to look the mer in the eye.

Without his shiny distraction, the mer was quick to react. He hissed, baring his fangs before flicking his tail in Remy’s direction and darting off behind a piece of coral.

“…that’s a yes.” Remy assured the group.

Thomas looked into the tank. Now, all that could be seen was a single fin, as the little guy was just too big to fit behind the plant.

“Do you think there’s more of him?” Thomas asked what they had all been thinking at some point or another. “I mean, do you think he had a family?”

“Well…I dunno.” Picani admitted. “By all appearances, it looks like a person crossed with a nurse shark- which are both very social creatures.”

“If this thing isn’t a freaky experiment, there has to be more.” Deceit assured him. “Because in case you’ve forgotten, that’s how biology works.”

“Are you gonna give us a fish reproduction lesson again?” Remy gagged.

“Maybe we should go looking for its family then.” Thomas suggested. “If it doesn’t like to be alone, we should bring the others here.”

“An excellent idea!” For once Deceit looked ecstatic, throwing his arm around Thomas’ shoulders. “What a wonderful thought, Thomas, and for once I didn’t have to feed it right to you.”

“…thank you?” Thomas wasn’t sure that was a compliment.

“We can go out tomorrow, bright and early on the waves.” Deceit announced. “Intern, you’re coming too.”

“I don’t roll out of bed until four.” Remy argued.

“Then I suggest you set an alarm, and caffeinate yourself.” Deceit gave him a look that meant this was not a actually a suggestion. “What about you, Doc, will you be accompanying us?”

“Why does he get a choice?” Remy groaned.

“How many doctorates do you have?” Thomas reminded him.

“I think I’ll stay here.” Picani gestured towards the tank. “Keep an eye on this lil’ guy, watch for any abnormal activity.”

“Very well then.” Deceit finally released Thomas. “I will see the two of you at the harbor, 6 o’clock.” He glared at Remy. “ _Don’t_ be late.”


	2. A Big Discovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Do you really ever find mers, or do mers just find you?

“This is my worst nightmare.” Remy scowled, looking displeased as he slumped over the side of the boat, wearing a sailor’s cap of all things. It was, naturally, the designated cap of shame aboard the  _S.S. Two-Faced._

“I told you that you shouldn’t be late.” Thomas shrugged, looking unsympathetic.

“It was one minute.” Remy argued. “What, like I was going to get on this atrocity without my morning Starbucks?”

“I did.” Thomas informed him.

“Your loss.” Remy raised his drink to his lips, sucking on the straw.

The sky seemed to share Remy’s mood. It was horribly overcast, casting everything in a dull grey and making it nearly impossible to make out anything in the water as far as the eye could see.

“Do you think it’s gonna rain again?” Thomas asked, turning to face the captain.

“I would if I were an imbecile.” Deceit answered, sunglasses on and not caring to look away from his position at the helm.

“That’s a no, babe.” Remy leaned over to mock whisper.

“Storm yesterday was too strong.” Deceit explained. “It won’t rain again until at least this afternoon because the clouds are too low on moisture.”

“Yeah, that sounds wrong but I don’t know enough about clouds to dispute it.” Thomas called over the roar of the engine.

“Keep your eyes peeled.” Deceit instructed, ignoring Thomas’ comment. “We’re nearing the spot we found the first one.” After his own statement, Deceit cut the engine, wanting to stop and look around.

“I call starboard.” Thomas said, heading to that side of the ship.

“I call…the other side.” Remy shrugged, staying put on his side of the boat.

“There’s something to the Northeast.” Deceit pointed. “I see a rippling in the waves.”

“Uh…looks like a pod of whales, maybe?” Thomas guessed, recognizing the familiar pattern of one of the large creature’s humps. Deceit looked disappointed, turning away. Thomas did as well. It was only Remy who continued to watch them, frowning as the shapes got closer.

“…those are some pretty big whales.” Remy raised an eyebrow. He was not a certified marine biologist by any stretch of the imagination, but something about the size of those things set warning bells off in his head.

“A whale shark, then?” Thomas suggested. Indeed, upon a second look, it was clear the creatures were massive. Thomas let out a low whistle. “Dang, you weren’t kidding.”

“Why are they all together, though?” Deceit frowned, the three of them congregating towards the front of the boat to try and get a closer look. “Whale sharks are solitary creatures.”

“Uh, I don’t think that one’s a whale shark.” Thomas pointed. “Are they ever red like that?”

“Red like what?” Deceit squinted, trying to make out what Thomas had seen, but the creature seemed to have ducked beneath the waves. Only the large blue crest of a whale shark’s tail was visible, and then that disappeared too.

“Am I the only one concerned that a bunch of sharks are  _coming right for us_?” Remy took a few steps back from the railing, not liking the way he couldn’t see the rippling anymore. With all the clouds, it was impossible to tell where the sharks had gone once they dove underwater.

“Oh, I wouldn’t be concerned.” Thomas assured him. “Whale sharks are harmless.”

##  **_BAM!_ **

All three of them let out a variety of their chosen curse words as the boat was violently knocked from below, throwing them off their feet.

“Then what the hell was  _that_?” Remy exclaimed, stumbling back up.

##  **_BAM! BAM! BAM!_ **

The waters began to get positively frothy as waves splashed over the side of the boat, a side effect of the unknown force ramming repeatedly into the hull. It felt like two of the sharks were playing ping pong with the vessel as it was knocked from side to side, threatening to capsize as it tilted just a little too far.

“Brace yourselves!” Deceit warned, trying desperately to make it back up to the captain’s quarters without being thrown off.

“What do you  _think_ I’m doing?!” Remy screeched, clinging to the mast for all he was worth. Even his drink had been abandoned, sliding off the edge a moment later. He was drenched from head to toe, resembling a drowned rat. Another wave came over the side, causing him to sputter madly as he accidentally inhaled some sea water. The only good part of all this was that somewhere in the first few waves that atrocious hat had gone missing.

“Curses upon curses, the motor won’t start!” Deceit yelled, pressing the button repeatedly and getting only a series of sputters.

The humans cringed, an unholy shrieking joining in the cacophony of noise surrounding them. An ominous shape began to emerge near the helm of the ship, and Deceit eyes widened as his gaze continued to travel up, up,  _up_ , farther than a whale should ever breech. For now it was clear to see this was no whale shark- or at least, not in the ordinary sense. Because towering over them was a massive,  _humanoid_  figure, akin to the one currently awaiting them back at the lab.

“Wait a second-” Remy’s mouth dropped in realization. “Ours is a _baby_?”

The giant let out another screech, tearing into the deck of the ship and leaving long claw marks in the wood. Deceit paled, looking up into a golden gaze so full of determination and raw power. When it snarled, its teeth were sharp like a true carnivores, looking ready to tear apart their flesh the second they got within range.

“Abandon ship!” Deceit commanded, feeling the ship begin to tilt as the creature continued to attack it.

“You want to go into the shark infested waters?” Remy scoffed, watching Deceit run down the stairs. “Are you insane?”

“Doesn’t look like we have much choice in the mater.” Deceit argued, grasping onto a nearby rail as the boat nearly went horizontal. “I vote I die on my terms.”

“I vote we don’t die!” Remy countered.

“For once in your life, do something useful instead of making snide comments behind your lattes!” Deceit ordered, bending down near the side of the haul where the lifeboat waited. “Help me untie this.”

Both of them felt a strange shift in gravity, the giant releasing his grip on the boat and sinking briefly into the waves. A moment later there was a loud  _whoosh_ , and the creature propelled itself up out of the water. Deceit stared in awe, gaping at the shark as it jumped right over the ship in all its gigantic glory. The tail end had one much longer, sharper fin, that seemed to reel back while it was in the air.

“Get down!” Deceit instructed. Not a moment later, the appendange came crashing onto the hull, sending the vessel up on a 90 degree angle. Remy found himself briefly dangling above the open waters, heart pounding as he glanced down to see a smaller shark fin eagerly circling below him.

“OhmygoshOhmygosh-” Remy cringed, strengthening his grip on the sopping wet wood. From the depths a massive blue shadow seemed to shift beneath the waves, and Remy let out another shriek as the boat was tipped back over.

With a burst of adrenaline Remy rushed over to Deceit’s side, frantically undoing the slippery knots. The lifeboat came undone, and the two began to get ready to lug it over the side. Deceit glanced into the waters, watching as the red shark circled around for a better vantage point. The captain braced himself for another attack, but it just kept circling and circling, never breeching again. In fact, it seemed to have stopped its assault on the vessel entirely.

“Wait, where’d the others go?” Deceit paused in his work, glancing deeper.

“Don’t say that like it’s a disappointment!” Remy hissed. “More sharks does not equal more fun. It equals more  _death_. I should know, I completed calculus, hun.”

“…he’s leaving.” Deceit said in realization. He stood up, rushing over to the edge to confirm. In the distance the burgundy tail could be seen flipping up, sending one last passive aggressive splash in their direction. “That son of a gun is leaving.”

“Wait, really?” Remy pushed his sopping wet hair out of his face, giving a half crazed laugh of relief. “Oh my  _god_ , thank the heavens! I almost really thought I was a goner!” He stuck his middle finger up at the sky. “YOU’LL HAVE TO TRY HARDER TO GET ME, SUCKA! Aaaaaaugh oh I never,  _ever_ want to do that again. You are never dragging me on another expedition, you hear me old man? From now on, Thomas is your one and only guinea pig.”

Deceit glanced around the boat, a feeling of unease beginning to soak him to the bone more than the waves had done just moments ago. “…hold on, where is Thomas?”

Remy looked around, paling as he realized the exact same thing.

“…shit.”


	3. Man Overboard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Patton gets attached to the little sinking figure.

_“That’s the one.”_  Patton whispered, pointing to the ship coming closer- the ship that had taken his baby brother away.

Roman let out a low playful growl, his claws crunching tighter around their grip on the rock outcropping and causing some pieces to break off into the ocean.

 _“…that’s not a boat_.” Logan, the eldest, peered out over his smaller brother’s shoulders. “ _Boats have sails.”_

 _“Not anymore.”_  Roman gave Logan a strange look over his shoulder.  _“What’s it been since you breached, a millennium?”_

 _“Hardly.”_  Logan scoffed.  _“But when you reach my age, I hope you’ll understand that the idea of all these land beings is…distasteful. One doesn’t need to go surface-side to experience a full life.”_

Roman glared at him.  _“…I’m not THAT much younger, you know.”_

 _“Wait, it’s stopped!”_  Patton darted towards the stationary vessel, calling out.  _“Virgil, we’re coming!”_

 _“Patton, wait!”_ Logan dove into the water, creating quite a rippling effect as he followed his younger sibling. A splash was heard behind him, and Logan looked back to see Roman had quite the grin on his face.  _“Roman, stop smiling, your brother’s been abducted.”_

 _“Oh come now, humans are harmless with their tiny limbs.”_  Roman teased, propelling himself along with furious thrusts of his tail.

 _“And yet dangerous with their machines.”_  Logan muttered. Being the largest of the mers, humans were not necessarily a threat to  _him,_  but Logan had been around long enough to know that the little pests could be quite dangerous to a guppy like Virgil.

The family of mers were not violent by nature, but fiercely loyal. The storm had caught the youngest two off-guard two nights ago, separating Patton from the littlest mer. Once he had found Virgil, it was only to spot him being dragged aboard the human’s boat, carried off who knows where. The thought made Logan furious once more, and he reached out a hand to give the boat a warning shove.

 _“Ooh, it’s been ages since I got to terrorize anyone.”_ Roman’s grin increased in size, pushing the boat from the other side in retaliation. As the two giant mers pushed the human’s invention between them like a plaything, Patton circled all around the bottom of it, frantically looking for any sign of Virgil.

 _“Virgil? Virgil!”_  Patton called out, his circles getting closer to the surface. He sniffed at the water, trying to catch any scent of him. There was nothing. The boat no longer held the faintest trace of a mer on board _. “Virgil, please kiddo, come on out!”_

The three sharks whipped around, hearing the whirling as the motor began to try to engage. Patton shrieked, quick to get out of its way. Not wanting to take any chances, Logan grabbed the device by its blade and forced it to stay stationary. The largest mer let out a hiss as the motor was tested again, tearing cuts into his hand.

 _“Logan!”_  Patton swam over hurriedly to Logan’s head, looking his giant brother in the eye. _“Logan, are you alright?”_

 _“I’m fine.”_  Logan answered.  _“It’s merely a flesh wound._ ” The eldest mer could endure a little pain if it meant possibly saving Virgil. Once he was certain the motor was done, Logan removed his hand, clutching it to his chest. There was a faint scent of Logan’s blood in the water now, and it only fueled Roman on.

 _“I’m gonna take a look above.”_  Roman warned them, shoving up above the water. The second he emerged, the human’s cries became much more audible. Good- they should be terrified. Roman wasn’t one for mercy when it came to his brothers.

 _“WHERE IS HE!”_  Roman yelled, baring his fangs and tearing into the ship.  _Ooooh_ , this was fun. But Roman couldn’t get distracted- he was here on a mission. His eyes scanned the entire vessel, searching for anything that could possibly be a sign of his brother.

…wait.

No, no there had to be something here. Roman couldn’t leave empty handed. Not now; they had come all this way. If Virgil wasn’t here, then…where could he be?

Roman dove back into the water, spotting Logan still clutching his hand. The eldest swirled the salty ocean sea around his hand, and Roman watched the water turn into a clear teal. Logan was strong in the ways of the Sea Witch- the goddess who gave her lifeblood to fuel all oceanic life.

 _“How am I looking up there?”_  Roman asked, seeking validation.

 _“You could do with a little less violence.”_  Logan noted.

 _“You’re doing fantastic, Roman!”_  Patton clapped his little hands, his reaction a stark contrast to his siblings’.  _“Any sign of Virgil?”_

 _“No, not yet.”_  Roman admitted. “ _Just watch this, I’m going to try something.”_

Roman leapt from the water, the force of his jump flinging him through the air until he arched above the ship. The humans gaped up at him in a mixture of terror and awe. Roman smirked, pleased with their reactions but not quite done. He reeled his powerful tail back like a spring, eyeing the tiny humans on the ship below him.

 _“This is for Virgil.”_  Roman informed them, slamming his tail down.

Patton gasped, watching from below as the ship turned on its side. In all the chaos, no one else seemed to notice a single human fall into the water. Patton swam closer, circling below. He…he shouldn’t be thinking about this right now. Virgil could be in trouble, Virgil could be in  _danger_ …

…The human did kind of look like Virgil, though. They were the same size as him, too. So little and in need of protection. Did that mean all these humans were guppies, too? They were all just so small, hardly a fourth of Patton’s own size. And this human looked cuddly too, just like a small dolphin.

 _“What did I just say about violence?”_  Logan swam up, pushing the boat upright with his good hand as the other continued to heal.  _“He’s not here, Roman.”_

Roman continued to circle the boat, around and around and around and-

 _“Roman.”_  Logan called out harshly.  _“Enough games. This is serious.”_

 _“Just one more jump?”_  Roman pleaded.

 _“No! If Virgil is not here, there’s no time to waste.”_  Logan insisted.  

Meanwhile, Patton was oblivious to his brother’s arguing, watching the sad little way the human tried to maneuver through the water. What good were its legs for swimming, anyways? Patton always thought humans were silly because of that. He giggled, watching it float around in circles. Aww, how could Logan thing such a cute little thing was dangerous?

 _“Hey there, lil’ guy.”_  Patton cooed, coming closer to get a better look. It seemed to be darting its head around, eyes cloudy as it became disoriented.

 _“Patton, we’re leaving.”_  Logan called out, already in the distance. With a huff Roman was following behind as well.

 _“Coming!”_  Patton looked at the human one last time. Logan always said a human was too dangerous to keep… but oh, he really  _did_  look like Virgil. Patton’s heart began to break, and not able to help himself any longer Patton pulled the human into his massive embrace.

The effect was immediate- the human let out a cloud of bubbles, trying to push frantically away from Patton.

 _“Oh, no no no!”_  Patton adjusted his grip, trying to keep the squirmy human in his arms. _“No, none of that!”_

Logan and Roman seemed to have ceased their arguing, the ocean going strangely silent as they floated down to see their younger brother struggling.

 _“…What is that?”_  Logan asked, knowing fully well what it was.

 _“Patton, you didn’t.”_  Roman sighed in annoyance.

 _“He won’t stop struggling!”_  Patton wailed, looking lost as his eyes began to tear up.

 _“He requires oxygen.”_  Logan reminded him.  _“Did you brand him yet?”_

 _“How do I do that?”_  Patton asked, having never done this before. More bubbles began to escape his human. A worrying amount, actually.

 _“Focus your magic.”_  Logan instructed, pointing to his neck where his own set of gills resided.  _“Just here, above the collar bone.”_

 _“R-right.”_  Patton took a deep breath, placing his hand where his brother indicated. He focused on drawing from the energy of the sea around him, redirecting its natural flow into his human’s body. The skin began to glow a faint teal, and the human let out a series of coughs. It looked around, seemingly shocked to find it was still alive.

 _“I did it!”_  Patton exclaimed, removing his hand to show a little glowing blue star marking. The human reached up to his neck in almost a daze, touching the skin and looking up at Patton wearily.

 _“Aw, you’re welcome lil’ minnow!”_  Patton gave him a big smile that seemed to have the opposite intended effect, but Patton was the only one who didn’t notice. He gave the human a large bear hug, holding the squirmy human to his chest. Though he was squirmy, at least Patton was able to hug him. Virgil would often slip right out of his grasp.

 _Virgil…_  Patton’s eyes felt a bit wet, and he hugged the human to his chest tighter, earning a cute little squeak from the creature.

 _“Okay, so we have …this… now.”_  Roman gestured to the human almost irritably. Why did Patton always have all the luck?

 _“Perhaps all is not lost.”_  Logan suggested, bringing his hand to his chin thoughtfully. _“We could leverage this human in our favor to help find Virgil. A shark fin for a shark fin, and all that.”_

 _“You…do think Virgil’s okay, right?”_  Roman crossed his arms tightly, trying to hide any negative feelings he might have towards Logan’s answer. Despite the fact humans were easy to manipulate, being separated from his youngest brother still made Roman nervous. Especially since now, they had sort of reached a dead end.

 _“Well, I think this human had a slimmer chance of survival, and he’s fine.”_  Logan pointed to the human in question, who seemed to have become nothing more than a snuggle toy at this point.  _“Humans find us as fascinating as we do them. Virgil is likely still under their observation.”_

 _“Right, of course.”_  Roman nodded, realizing that made sense _. “So we bring along this human, and they show us Virgil?”_

 _“I think it’s a viable solution.”_  Logan shrugged.

 _“And just how do you plan to take the human from Patton?”_  Roman raised an eyebrow _. “You just let the guppy get his first pet, he’s already attached now, Logan. How are you going to convince him to give it back?”_

 _“Who said anything about giving the human back?”_  Logan asked, raising an eyebrow of his own.


	4. Harboring a Killer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Perhaps their 'little' find isn't as cute as it appears.

Picani was sat in front of the large glass enclosure, just as he had been all day. It was fascinating watching the creature explore his environment. Originally when Picani entered it had hissed and hid just as before, but when Picani proved to not be a threat the mer returned to its activities. It seemed to be…hunting? But not for food, as Picani had tested its diet earlier by offering a selection of seafood. The shark mer had turned up its nose at anything Picani offered, instead trying to bite at Picani’s own hand. The doctor had decided they could try again later with a larger variety, as clearly the mer was still quite on edge. Besides, it was quite likely the creature was a nocturnal feeder, just like the creature that shared its tail.

But back to the moment at hand, the violet shark seemed to have developed a game for itself, just as dolphins were known to do when under stimulated.  This involved taking a shell and tossing it up into the water so the artificial current would move it lazily along. Then, the mer would bury slightly in the sand, waiting like a cat before he inevitably pounced on the shell, grabbing it triumphantly in his claws.

Picani could not help it- he laughed at the resemblance. The mer turned to him, clearly confused by his laughter. 

“Ah, I’m sorry, I do not mean to offend.” Picani quickly covered his mouth. Of course, the fish likely could not understand him, as it merely tilted its head. How strange that such a predator could possess so many qualities not unlike a bored child.

Suddenly, Picani heard the doors burst open behind him. He jumped up, seeing his colleagues in the doorway clearly soaked from the rain.

“Oh goodness! Are you all alright? How did it go? You’ve been gone a strangely long time.” Indeed, a journey that Picani had expected to end by noon had lasted far into the evening. The sun had set several hours ago, which should have made it dangerous to be on the waters. Picani paused, noting their solemn expressions as they came closer. “…what’s wrong?”

“Thomas…” Remy paused, glaring into the tank. Picani followed his gaze, noting that the mer had been startled back into his hiding spot by their entrance. It wrapped its body around the large piece of coral and peered around the edge to watch the humans cautiously. At Remy’s glare, the little mer glared back, going so far as to stick out his tongue between his fangs.

“That thing is a monster!” Deceit snarled, pointing at the tank. “We found its kin, alright. They’re huge. This one’s just a kid. The others tried to take down the ship, nearly succeeded too.”

“What?” Picani took another glance at the mer, trying to imagine it large enough to take down Deceit’s vessel. He took a second glance at his fellow humans, realized there were only two of them, and paled. “Where’s Thomas?”

“They killed him.” Deceit growled.

Picani paled even further, his heart sinking as he tried to imagine what could have happened to sweet, innocent Thomas, the lab assistant who always saw the best in the wildest of creatures. Would one of these mers really go so far as to murder him? And of all the people on that vessel, why would fate be so cruel as to choose the kindest soul?

No, Picani quickly shook his head at that thought, not daring to even suggest in his mind that either one of his colleagues before him was a more welcome sacrifice.

“He got thrown into the water.” Remy explained, strangely quiet in his own way of paying respect. “We searched for hours, but there wasn’t even a trace of him left. These monsters destroyed him, probably ripping him apart with their fangs and-and- and this freaking sociopath thinks it’s a JOKE!”

At the last part of his sentence, Remy waved his hand wildly at the shark, who seemed to have gained a sinister grin as he watched Remy begin to panic. It was a cruel sort of smile, and it certainly was the most Picani had seen of those fangs all day. He shuddered, remembering how moments ago the creature had looked so harmless.

“Most oceanic life avoids human vessels.” Picani said softly. “If there really are creatures like this out there with intent to do us harm…” He let his sentence trail off in the air. They all filled in the blanks, realizing that giant mers with a taste for human blood could mean water travel was no longer a haven for any human.

“Why did we have to be the ones to discover the apocalypse?” Remy groaned, clutching at his head. “This is like some bad remake of Jurassic Park.”

“Here’s a better theory.” Deceit spoke up. “I’ve driven in those waters all my life and have never been attacked. If those things wanted to take me down before, why didn’t they do it then?”

“Maybe they waited until today because I’m just such a snacc?” Remy suggested, only half joking. After all, he tended to avoid getting on boats as a rule, and would certainly not be getting on another anytime soon if he had his way.

“Don’t flatter yourself.” Deceit rolled his eyes. “It’s because they were after something. This.” He gestured to the tank, where the mer had begun to make faces at them once more. The raspberries blown in their direction seemed cruelly comical.

“They’re just trying to protect their own.” Picani realized. “But…how did they know to attack you?”

“They probably recognized the boat.” Remy shrugged. “Snakeskin isn’t exactly a common exterior design. Or a good one.”

“Ignoring your cheek for the sake of the world.” Deceit snarled, giving Remy a slight glare for daring to insult his pride and joy. “We need to fling this thing back in the ocean before they kill someone else.”

“But you said-“

“I know what I said!” Deceit interrupted. “But that’s before this became a life or death deal. I don’t care what this thing is. I don’t care where it came from, I don’t care if it’s injured, and I don’t care if it dies the moment we throw it back.”

“I don’t think they’ll thank us for that if we give them a- a  _corpse_.” Picani brought up a good point. If they were going to try to appease ferocious sea monsters by returning their young, it would be best if said specimen survived that long.

“On the other hand, that’s not a bad idea.” Remy seemed hesitant to step closer to the tank, glaring defiantly at the mer. “That’s right, I said it. Wanna become sushi, little guy?”

The mer glared defiantly back, and Picani recognized its playful hunting behavior. The mer was crouched down near the sand, tail only swishing faintly. All of a sudden it dove at the glass, causing Remy to let out a shriek and stumble back.

“It’s behind glass, you idiot.” Deceit huffed, hoisting Remy to his feet. “And stop trying to antagonize it.” A cluster of bubbles escaped the mer’s lips, clearly amused by Remy’s reaction.

“He started it!” Remy pointed at the tank, where the shark had shuffled down into the sand looking defiantly smug as he lay on his stomach.

“He’s a child.” Picani reminded him. “And he’s not necessarily a ‘he’, either.”

“Oh, yeah, right, I wouldn’t want to mis-gender the  _murderer_.” Remy crossed his arms. His statement, though said in jest, stung. It reminded the group of the member missing, and Picani almost found himself looking towards the door to wait for Thomas’ return.

“I say we return it tomorrow morning.” Deceit said in a tone that meant business. “I’ll need both of your help to lug this thing to the boat and watch it while I navigate out.”

“It’s…best if no one else knows of this.” Picani agreed.

“What if those monsters come back?” Remy shivered, clearly still traumatized from this morning.

“I’m counting on it.” Deceit retorted, his eyes darkening as he looked in the tank. “An eye for an eye, huh?”


	5. The First Catch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happened to Thomas?

Thomas was dead… right? He had to be dead. He _should_ be dead.

He remembered that monster coming out of the water, so terrifyingly gigantic. He remembered feeling like the boat might just topple over, like a bath toy sunken by a teasing child. Thomas had been thrown about, desperately clinging to the railing, but the metal was slick with sea spray and Thomas had tumbled overboard into the waves.

Frantically Thomas had attempted to tread water. Where was the surface? He kept trying to push his legs up but after a while he didn’t know where ‘up’ was; it was an overbearing darkness, the currents dragging him down into the depths like a sunken prize. 

 _Is this how I die?_  Thomas had thought to himself, floating further into the murky blackness. His lungs began to burn, desperate to take in air, and Thomas knew he couldn’t hold his breath much longer. Were Remy and Deceit next? Would they join him? Thomas’ eyes stung, straining to make out anything in the opaque waters. He could only see shadows, large ominous figures that appeared too impossibly big to be swimming this close to the surface.

All of a sudden, a massive embrace crushed around Thomas’ stomach. Against his will Thomas let out a gasp, and instantly water began to pour into his lungs.

 _NO!_ Thomas wanted to scream, thrashing wildly as his abdomen felt as though it was on fire. Thomas squirmed against the impossible grip, terrified as he renewed his desperate attempts to get to the surface. _I DON’T WANNA DIE!_

There were noises, horrible noises, muffled by the waves but still sounding like a mix of a jungle cat and the screech of nails on a chalkboard. Thomas’ shoulders shot up to his ears, intent on blocking out the sounds before a flash of pain racked across his chest and Thomas realized at least when he was dead in a moment he wouldn’t have to hear the awful wailings.

Thomas’ vision was spotty now, he could feel the strain on his eyes. The tears he released mixed with the salty waters all around him. Thomas tensed, feeling sharp claw nails pressing against his neck. A moment later a new sensation began. Where the creature’s palm touched against his skin, a burning icy fire began to spread, forcing Thomas’ chest to contract inwards on himself. If there was any air left in his lungs Thomas would have screamed, squeezing his eyes shut tight and wondering if his ribcage was just going to collapse in on itself like a dying star.

Yes, Thomas should be dead by now… but he wasn’t.

“I did it!” There was a voice, sounding right behind his ear. It had a strange accent to it, sounding overly bubbly. The feeling of strong limbs wrapped around his torso remained, but the constricting feeling of death seemed to have vanished. His lungs no longer burned, and Thomas could feel his heart pumping away normally as though it did not care about his near fatal departure.

_…what?_

Thomas opened his eyes, blinking in surprise. He was still underwater, yet he could see.It was as though someone adjusted the brightness of a laptop, and now Thomas could make out two  _huge_ expanses of midnight blue and scarlet red smooth skin.

Thomas gasped, and realized that when he did so that burning sensation did not return to his lungs. There was still a faint tingling sensation on his neck, left behind as though the creature still holding him in a vice grip had marked him. Thomas reached a hand up, tentatively touching his neck, and his skin felt cool beneath his touch. Slowly, Thomas looked up, trying to get a better look at his- captor? Savior?

“Aw, you’re welcome lil’ minnow!” An almost human face grinned down at him, but it was far too large with too many sharp teeth. Thomas gulped. Was this mer just going to eat him now? Maybe it saved him just because it wanted to hurt Thomas himself… but when it had spoken, it sounded so  _human_ , and even now Thomas noted a certain playfulness in the creature’s eyes. Hopefully it didn’t want to play with him like a cat plays with its prey.

“Ah!” Thomas gave a small cry, shocked to hear his own voice as he was all but crushed once again against the mer’s chest. He struggled, trying to make sense of what the heck was going on. Why could he all of a sudden breathe underwater? What had this creature  _done_  to him?

Thomas flinched, hearing those strange noises again rumbling through the waves. He turned, spotting the two intimidating figures a little way off. They were so massive that crushed in this grip Thomas could only make out part of their tails, never mind their faces. Were they…talking to each other? But why couldn’t Thomas understand them? He had definitely heard the light blue one using him as a teddy bear talk.

“W-what…” Thomas croaked, testing his voice out under the water. It felt wrong, letting salt water fill his throat but feeling no burning need for air. “What’s happening?”

“EEEE!” The shriek the mer gave was not unlike a dolphin, but it was so high-pitched right near Thomas’ ear that the human desperately wished he could cover them. Alas, his hands were still strapped firmly to his sides by the unrelenting grip. The mer didn’t answer his question, instead turning excitedly to the larger giants. “Logan, he can  _talk_!”

This time Thomas expected the rumbling that came in response, and even in mer-language Thomas recognized that parental tone of ‘yes yes, very nice’ when an adult was off-handedly praising a child.

“I- why do you know English?” Thomas said blearily, so many questions floating around his waterlogged brain.

The mer tilted his head, looking into Thomas’ eyes with a questioning gaze. His sapphire eyes felt like they might peer into Thomas’ soul. “…English? What’s English?”

“It’s…what we’re speaking?” Thomas frowned, slowing his struggles as he got a little more wiggle room, the mer having loosened his grip to let Thomas lean back. “Like, the language. I mean, we are, aren’t we? Why else could I understand you?”

“Why, your mark silly.” The mer giggled, tapping that spot on Thomas’ neck he had touched before.

Thomas felt a jolt tingle through his veins, his body reacting intensely to the mer’s touch. To  _Patton’s_  touch. Patton, the Oceanic whitetip reef mer, second youngest of the clan.

Wait, why on Earth did he know that?

Patton seemed surprised by the interaction as well, peering down at the human curiously. “ _Thomas._ ” Patton said his name, and Thomas nearly shivered as a cool wave of energy washed over him. “Aww, what a cute name, it suits you!”

“Thank … you?” Thomas felt his nose scrunching up. “And you’re, uh, Patton, right?”

“You said my name!” Patton shrieked again, eagerly cutting off Thomas and once again Thomas wished he could protect his ears. “ _Do it again_!”

“Patton!” Thomas said it in a rush, eyes widening in horror. He hadn’t tried to say that. It was as though the words had been ripped from his lungs, the human having no choice in the matter.

Was this magic? Is  _that_  what was happening? Thomas felt himself growing uncomfortably tingly, too many unanswered questions giving him anxiety. He wished he could run his fingers along his neck, if only to try and figure out what exactly Patton had done to him. Was there a bruise? A glowing circle? Did he have  _gills_? Considering he was breathing underwater and talking to a merman, Thomas would believe it.

“What’s happening?” Thomas asked again, beginning to feel lightheaded. His eyes darted around, trying to find answers in the unyielding murky depths. Even with his newly enhanced underwater vision, only shadows loomed in the distance. “Where am I? What’s going to happen to me?”

“Oh, Thomas,  _shhh_.” Patton shushed him, pressing the human’s head to his shoulder. His slightly webbed hand began to brush Thomas’ hair, making Thomas shudder. It was such a familiar action and yet so foreign. The hand was too large, the form he was pressed against too unfamiliar. It was like one half of Thomas’ brain fought against this, and the other half wanted to submit into the embrace of his mer.

… _his_  mer?

“ _Just sleep, mini minnow_.” Patton giggled. At the sound of his command, Thomas’ eyelids drooped, and the world went dark. 


End file.
